TOPLINE
“PalmPay is a child of circumstance,” he says. Before 2019, payment failures in Nigeria were frustratingly common. Success rates hovered around 90%, and he believed the gap could be closed. His team set out to build a platform that could deliver near-perfect results. “We wanted a system with a 99 to 100% success rate. Today, PalmPay sits comfortably at 99.8%.
Growth came faster than expected. When Chika became Managing Director in 2021, PalmPay had fewer than 5 million users. A few years later, the platform crossed 40 million. The goal now is 100 million users. “We believe before the next five years, we will reach 100 million,” he says with quiet certainty. One major challenge at the beginning was trust. Nigerians had just survived years of Ponzi schemes, and digital platforms were viewed with caution. “You weren’t seeing anybody physically, unlike a bank,” he recalls. “People didn’t trust easily.” PalmPay responded by increasing visibility, opening offices across all 36 states, strengthening customer care, and staying transparent. Trust slowly followed, and today the platform is considered one of the most reliable and trusted fintech services in Nigeria.
Chika’s leadership style is simple: service, not ego. “I believe in people’s opinions, everyone working with me must feel like part of the business.” And at the center of all operations is a habit he never takes lightly: keeping customers happy. “Our customer is number one. If the public doesn’t trust you, especially in financial services, forget it.”
Compliance is another pillar. “Before we launch any product, compliance must check it.” Every Central Bank regulation is followed strictly.
Looking at the future, Chika sees Nigeria taking bold steps toward a cashless society. “In the next five years, cash might disappear,” he predicts. He expects Artificial Intelligence to play a huge role in payments, fraud detection, and transaction management. PalmPay is already adapting for that shift. The brand is also expanding beyond Nigeria, active in Ghana and Tanzania, with plans for more African and Asian countries.
Outside work, Chika describes himself as a “family person” who finds the most peace at home. He’s more of a movie lover than a music fan, and Nollywood is his first choice. His favourite actors include Charles Inojie, Chinedu Ikedieze, and especially Ebube. “She makes me happy.” He doesn’t follow football but enjoys table tennis, and when
he needs a break outside Nigeria, he goes to Shenzhen, China, a city he considers a big part of his story. “It feels like home.” On legacy, he doesn’t hesitate. “I want to be
remembered as one of the people who changed Nigeria’s financial ecosystem. If digital payments are remembered, PalmPay will be remembered. And once PalmPay is remembered, my name will also be remembered.”
